Keys to Success: Congratulations to Patrice!

Congratulations to Patrice, our newest Keys to Success participant!

Patrice entered the Medical Assistant training program in the winter of 2020. She learned about the Keys to Success program from working with the Financial Opportunity Center during class. Patrice knew she would need a reliable vehicle to give herself the best employment opportunities after graduation. She started saving for her vehicle in August and after completing her training accepted a full time Medical Assistant position with Thundermist in Woonsocket.

Patrice managed to get by with a bridge vehicle for the first few months. After completing the program, she was able to purchase a reliable Honda Accord with low mileage that will give her peace of mind driving back and forth from Woonsocket every day.

Congratulations to Patrice on her new job and her new car!

Keys to Success is a matched savings program that allows low-moderate income Rhode Islanders to save money for reliable transportation. Thank you to our partners and funders- Pawtucket Credit Union, Harbor One Bank, and Rhode Island Foundation. If you would like to learn more about the program please contact Chris Ackley at cackley@gencenter.org

Photo of Patrice taken by her son!

Patrice’s son and photographer!

Genesis Center featured on Mosaic!

Former ESOL student, Zenaida Garcia, is featured on Mosaic, a podcast on The Public's Radio that explores immigration and identity in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.

Zenaida wrote an article in our ESOL for Career Pathways class that was published in the Change Agent, an adult education magazine for social justice. This led to her employment at the Providence Center as a Peer Recovery Specialist. World Education, the parent company of the Change Agent, invited Zenaida to give a speech at their national conference in Boston. She shares her journey and many accomplishments on this week's episode of Mosaic! (Learning Facilitator David Buchalter also makes an appearance!)

Congratulations Zenaida!

Listen Here: Zenaida and the vaivén - Explore TPR (thepublicsradio.org)

Zenaida Garcia (photo from Mosaic, The Public’s Radio)

Congratulations Chef Josh Riazi

Congratulations to Culinary Director Josh Riazi for placing third in the Nonprofit Innovation Lab. Genesis Center and our new project CHOP (the Culinary Hub of Providence) was awarded $15,000 during the final pitch. CHOP is a food enterprise that will redesign the culinary arts training program model from a traditional classroom setting to paid, “on-the-job” training. Thank you to the United Way of Rhode Island and Social Enterprise Greenhouse for the opportunity to participate in this exciting program.

Read more about the Innovation Lab and the winners here.

Thank you CVS Health!

Genesis Center is pleased to be a recipient of a $25,000 gift from CVS Health!

As ongoing partners in our Pharmacy Technician program, we are so grateful to CVS for the additional support this year. This generous gift will help us offset the increased expenses associated with COVID. Although our programs have moved to remote learning and hybrid models, our teachers and staff have been working hard to support our students and their successes.

Ted Mower, CVS Health Senior Consultant, Workforce Initiatives, shared, “I had a chance earlier this week to check in with the most recent cohort of pharmacy technician pre-apprentices and, as always, I’m encouraged by the level of support you’re all providing, and by the dedication of the hard-working students that, despite extraordinary obstacles, are looking to better themselves through your trainings.”

We thank CVS Health for their continued support and partnership!

Ted Mower with Pharmacy Tech graduates

Former Culinary Student Launches New Food Truck

"I picked a program at Genesis Center, and I really nailed it."

Congratulations to former Genesis Center Culinary student Welbi Genao. Chef Genao launched his new food truck, Trapboxpvd, this week and we wish him great success with this new venture!

Read more here…

Welbi Genao
Photo: Facebook

Early Learning Center Receives Grant for Facilities!

Genesis Center is pleased to be a recipient of the Early Learning Facilities Grant!

Thank you to the City of Providence and LISC Rhode Island for awarding Genesis Center this grant, allowing us to make necessary plumbing updates to our Early Learning Center. We are so grateful for the support and the opportunity to continue to improve our facilities for our youngest students and their families.

Read more here…

Congratulations to Natalia!

Natalia and her family

Congratulations to Natalia, our newest Keys to Success participant!

Natalia is a Pharmacy Tech graduate and a single mom of two.  She has been without a vehicle for the last few years and has been walking to her job at CVS. Most recently, she has been working from home as a call center representative. 

Natalia is so happy to have more freedom in her life. Her vehicle gives her more options for food shopping, recreation with her children, and she no longer has to rely on Uber and Lyft to get her around.  We are so happy for Natalia and her family!

Keys to Success is a matched savings program to help low-moderate income Rhode Islanders purchase reliable vehicles.  We are so grateful to the Rhode Island Foundation, Pawtucket Credit Union, and HarborOne Bank for their support of this great program!

Support the COVID Recovery Fund

As we continue to face the challenges of this year, we need your support now more than ever!

Genesis Center continues to provide services, including job training for healthcare workers (who are in even higher demand than ever), and childcare/early learning so the essential workers in our community can return to work. Our operating expenses have increased in order for us to provide a safe environment for our staff and students.

Give today at gencenter.org/give

Genesis Center on Telemundo!

A reporter from Telemundo visited Genesis Center to ask about our thoughts on the expansion of Pre-Kindergarten in the City of Providence. The city's goal is to provide Pre-Kindergarten completely free to every child in Providence. Genesis Center is one of Providence's Pre-K sites and we were so honored to be highlighted in this story! Watch the story here.

Keys to Success program: 'a blessing and literally life-saving for us'

“It was a blessing and literally life-saving for us,” says Samantha Gonzalez of her participation in the Keys to Success Vehicle Savings Program.

Keys to Success, one of the programs offered through the Genesis Center’s Financial Opportunity Center, helps low and moderate income Rhode Islanders save for and purchase a vehicle. Through the program, participants make regular deposits in a special savings account and receive financial coaching and training related to vehicle purchase and ownership. When participants have reached their savings goal of between $500 and $2,000, the money is matched dollar-for-dollar by contributions from the Rhode Island Foundation and Pawtucket Credit Union.

Thank you to the Rhode Island Foundation for sharing Samantha and Pablo's story! We are so grateful to the Rhode Island Foundation, Pawtucket Credit Union, and HarborOne Bank for their support of this great program!

Read more…

End of Semester ESOL Celebration!

We celebrate the hard work of all our amazing students that stuck with it through the entire spring semester!!